If I had to name one company that stays true to hip hop culture and everything it represents, that company would be Fresh & Fly Productions. The Sacramento based, multi-media events company, is a major contributer to the dance scene and continues to produce bigger & better dance events within the community. In addition, Fresh & Fly Productions is changing the game by giving dancers a new way to compete through their Bboy League. Find out about this and more in this Fresh & Fly interview with Larry “Phatso Fresh” Oliver.

What is “Fresh & Fly Productions” about?
Fresh and Fly Productions is about preserving the hip hop culture not only in Sacramento, but all over the West Coast. We provide positive hip hop based events, film, video production, and clothing.

What do you feel it will take for our hometown of Sacramento, CA, to become Nationally/Internationally recognized for its talent?
I feel that Sacramento has some of the most slept on talent in the United States. We have supplied top of the line bboys and hip hop dancers yet our city hardly ever receives any recognition. Bboy’s such as Morris, Machine, Kareem, Ajax, Abe, and Villn. Hip Hop Crews like Jabbawockeez, Boogie Monstarz, Press Play, Funky Fresh, and Art of Teknique. We have already proven we have the talent. I feel that we need to all come together, put our ego’s aside, and show the world what’s up.

How would you envision Sacramento’s Dance Scene in a perfect world?
In a perfect world, I would say that I’d like to see the Sacramento Dance Scene more unified. I want to see bigger events, less ego’s and more commitment to our youth. If we do not set a good example for our youth then they will continue in the same cycle.

You’re putting together something special for the Bboy Community. Can you share the details?
I’m glad you mentioned that. We at Fresh and Fly Productions decided that it was time to switch things up in the bboy scene. Instead of a single elimination competition, like every bboy jam you go to, we decided it was time to start our own bboy league. Thus came Kings of the Scene.

The idea behind Kings of the Scene is that we have 16 crews battle it out round robin style. At each event the 4 bottom ranked crews are eliminated. This goes on for 3 events until we get to the final 4 crews. From there we go single elimination style and the winner of the league will receive a flight to any event that they’d like to go to in the United States.

Why do you feel that there is a need for a Bboy League?
I feel that if we do not try something new that jams will become boring. I feel that by having a league it will help develop the competitors more than a typical event. Instead of battling up to 5 times (showcase, top 16, top 8 top 4, finals), you only battle twice a night. Or for the up and coming crews instead of just losing in the first round, you have another shot to show everyone what you’ve got.

What else do you guys do besides events?
While I focus more on events, my wife- Miss fly (the fly in fresh and fly) focuses on the media side. This is what makes us such a great team. You’ll see her at most of the local jams filming or taking pictures. We create promos, battle footage, trailers (or as we call them, flylights), flyers, DVDs, and anything else we get asked or inspired to do. We’ve also recently launched our clothing line.

Tell me more about the clothing line
Our Fresh and Fly clothing line is the newest addition to our life. In the hip hop culture, looking fresh (or fly!) is something that is always necessary. We wanted to provide the scene with something to represent who we are as a culture, while still looking cool. Our motto is “Eat. Sleep. Break.” It’s a way of life. We came out with 4 designs that anyone, Bboy or not, can rock and appreciate. We’ll be coming out with a few more designs in the very near future. The next few events we’ll be vending our gear at are The Goodfellas jam, World of Dance, and of course Kings of the Scene. You can always get our stuff at our online store at www.freshandflyproductions.com